Review: Parasyche- Insanity Origins
Parasyche are a recently formed technical thrash band coming
out of the warmer climes of Chile. Their most recent album, Insanity Origins,
came out in 2017, and is a mix of thrashier elements mixed with power metal and
more modern and technical elements.
The album starts out with "Box of Hate", a midpaced crusher
with some wah flourishes. Odd timings put the song slightly in prog territory
but for the most part it’s a thrasher.
The second song, "Vesania" has more a
faster feel, sounding somewhere between Megadeth and (latter day) Kreator at
times. The vocals feature a more melodic feel than the prior one, and this adds
to the song’s appeal. The neo-classical solos that pepper the song also
contributes to this contrast.
"Detonation" is the third song, and it alternates between
these two approaches. Political in bent lyrically, it’s an interesting song. The again,
maze like riffs of this one, definitely make the song a cut above your average
thrasher.
"The Treason" is next, and features some creative solos, but
the hooks of the prior songs are kind of lacking on this track. A cool softer
part is a highlight of the song though.
Speaking of ballads, the next song “Land of Lies” is a full-fledged
one. This song has the feel of a vintage Testament ballad, and the more
restrained vocals also fit into this idea s as well.
“Arise” follows, and is definitely at least halfway to
progressive metal, if not there, with it’s jazzy chords and obtuse passages
while retaining a sense of melody.
A bit more subdued than the early tracks, but while still having
groove parts amongst the thrashiness and alternating acoustic integrated parts,
this perhaps may be the best song on the album.
"Cachafraz" starts out with haunting acoustic guitars and is
back to thrashing but also with some acoustic interludes. It’s at this point
where the realization is that the album is split up in a way, the first half
being a thrashier and somewhat more straightforward sound, and the second half
being more epic and progressive. Some parts later in the song also recall Opeth
in a way.
The next song, “Need” is full on technical metal, almost recalling
Djent in it’s groove but with way more interesting varied riff progressions (no
chugging in morse code here).
"The Wolf Inside" continues the odd timings and more melodic
sections, if a bit more straightforward than the previous few.
This goes also for the songs, the elements of being a
fantastic band are all there, and the unique take they have on the genre could
be taken to the top where it belongs. Some of the songs could have better
resolutions and transitions between the very excellent riffs that are on
display. The vocal hooks could also stick a bit more come chorus time, the
verses sound good but something is lost when the choruses kick in. I know
sometimes albums like this may need more than one sitting, and I do look
forward to what the band has in mind for the future.
I would recommend this to fans of the bands mentioned, and also probably fans of newer Technical Thrash bands such as Vektor or Droid.
You can find out more about Parasyche from the following links:
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